Bill Tieleman is one of BC's best known communicators, political commentators and strategists.
Bill is a political panelist regularly on CBC Radio and TV in BC and with other media.
Bill has been Communications Director in the B.C. Premier's Office and at the BC Federation of Labour.
Bill owns West Star Communications, a consulting firm providing strategy and communication services for labour, business, non-profits and government.

Why Campbell? Because of his - and I'm not kidding on the language here - "efforts to right BC's economic ship" earned him top ranking in the Fraser Institute's study of Canadian premiers!

Never mind that GDP economic growth under Campbell's terms was actually a full point less than under the "dismal decade" of the previous NDP administrations - 3% growth under the NDP, 2% under the BC Liberals.

﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿Never mind the HST or the carbon tax or huge increases in the Medical Services Premiums - those are taxes paid by the little people - Campbell cut corporate taxes and personal income taxes for the wealthy! And at the Fraser Institute, that's what it takes to be honoured.

Here's the full notice:

* * * * *

Gordon Campbell and the Return of Prosperity to British Columbia

﻿﻿Wednesday, June 15, 2011 - Fairmont Hotel Vancouver

In 2001, Gordon Campbell was elected premier of B.C., coming to power following years of interventionist, economic policies enacted by successive NDP governments. Premier Campbell immediately set about reducing personal and business income taxes, decreasing the size of government, and reducing red tape and regulations.

The result was nothing short of remarkable as the province experienced a dramatic reversal of economic fortunes. B.C. went from having the lowest per person GDP growth among the provinces between 1990 and 2000 to being one of the fastest-growing economies before the world-wide recession in 2008.

Campbell’s efforts to right BC’s economic ship earned him the top ranking in the Fraser Institute 2010 study, Measuring the Fiscal Performance of Canada’s Premiers, a comparison of the economic policies of 10 Canadian premiers.

Join us for a discussion with former premier Gordon Campbell and hear how he restored B.C. to economic prosperity and what other governments can learn from his efforts to reduce taxes and eliminate debt.

Campbell was the most corrupt, worst premier, in Canadian history. BC is the most corrupt province in Canada, thanks to Campbell. Campbell's corrupt sale of the BCR, was the sleaziest, most corrupt event, our country has ever known.

Of course, a former Conservative premier would introduce Campbell. BC people knew Campbell worked for Harper.

Naturally the Fraser Institute is going to keep singing paeans about Campbell for some time. The problem for them though is that their preposterous ideological delusions are just riddled with contradictions and hypocrisy. They praise Campbell, but according to the definition of socialism that these folks tend to use, i.e. big government spending to direct the economy, Campbell is an outright Socialist. He may have shrunk the amount of state participation in the economy relative to GDP, and cut taxes for the wealthy, but the economy under his premiership was still ultimately driven by government intervention through big megaprojects and other spending, like their 3-year, $14 billion stimulus plan, or take the $6 billion dollar project to upgrade BC Hydro. Maybe the biggest government spending ever by a Premier apart from WAC whom was the "Castro of the North." The degree that Campbell's policies were good for the economy was probably largely due to his more "socialist" ones, for elementary Keynesian reasons. The construction industry was right to crown Campbell "Builder of the Decade." To use the Fraser Institute's hypocritical boilerplate: Campbell brought "years of interventionist, economic policies" and not just failed to "eliminate debt" but ushered in the largest debt and deficits in province's history to pay for all the massive spending.

The Fraser Institute can clutch their copies of Hayek all they want, but to their hardline, American conservative and libertarian colleagues (who find even Obama to be an egregious socialist spender) would be aghast at the spending and debt of someone like Campbell, not to mention things like the carbon tax.

I take it the reason for a supposed "free enterpriser" like Campbell to spend like a Socialist is because that is the formula that works in British Columbia for the so-called "free enterprise" coalition to maintain power. Reminds me of an interesting comment that Kropotkin has in Conquest Of Bread about this method, and how Napoleon III used it to subdue the populace and a robust Left:

Napoleon III succeeded in contenting the Parisian proletariat for eighteen years by giving them public works--which cost Paris to-day its debt of £80,000,000 and itsmunicipal tax of three or four pounds a-head; because this excellent method of "taming the beast" was customary in Rome, and even in Egypt four thousand years ago; and lastly, because despots, kings, and emperors have always employed the ruse of throwing a scrap of food to the people to gain time to snatch up the whip--it is natural that "practical" men should extol this method of perpetuating the wage system. What need to rack our brains when we have the time-honoured method of the Pharaohs at our disposal??

"Join us for a discussion with former premier Gordon Campbell and hear how he restored B.C. to economic prosperity and what other governments can learn from his efforts to reduce taxes and eliminate debt."

So, by 2013 BC should be about $60 billion in debt, with future committments reported to top us up to $100, billion or so, a population of 4 million, looks like we will be vieing with Ireland as an economic powerehouse.

I wanted to add comments re: the fraser institute, however the comments of Adrian B give the clearest explanation of the hypocrisy of many conservative or right wing governments and their cheerleaders.

Thatcher, Reagan, Bushes senior and minor, Mulroney, Harper, small amounts of research will turn up similar patterns. Sermons from the mount regarding their philosophy of fiscal responsibility and deregulation, support for those policies from their respective cheerleading nodding donkeys and paymasters who just happen to have their hands out whilst looking the other way when things go pear shaped.

Then a complete denial, or denial by ommission of the blatant mismanagement of their respective economies. When their last stooge gets past their best before date and the new one is in situ., the cycle starts again. Look familiar.?

For crying out loud folks,start taking a look at what is going on around us. Start with Reagan on Wiki.

Same BS that I was fed (and swallowed)by the MSP at the beginning of the decade. I also applauded the sale of BCR - government has no place running a railroad! However, IT HAS NO PLACE STEALING ONE EITHER!!!So, when rumours started that there was some hanky-panky there was no problem. The RCMP were on top of it! And we waited ...and waited, and waited, until October 2010. And finally I saw the light!

Fool me once, shame on you! Fool me twice, shame on me!

We need a final resolution of this scandle to put a different light on our 'esteemed' ex-premier.

So we have lots of "double speak' FROM OUR GOVERNMENT OF THE DAY TO ADVANCE WHATEVER AGENDA THEY HAVE?As quoted in the G&M today; "There's a lot of appetite for a little bit of honesty and straight talk about where we are at and I think that's what people expect of me" she says, "and that's a tough expectation to meet because government as an institution works against all those things all the time" So this is what Justine Hunter and Ian Bailey reveal in retelling this statement of Ms. Chrisy Clark as "Queen of the Airways" and as they say that some would call her "a populist".

But Gwyn Morgan says "No", that she makes the tough decisions and would not then be considered in that group, I guess, he means. A populist is one, in his definition,then, who bends this way and that; to the populist voices? Maybe as the founder of the energy giant, Encana, Mr. Morgan sees populism in a much different light!

So really, if government works against "HONESTY and STRAIGHT TALK all the time"...I wonder if she is planning to give us just a tidbit of it now! OOPS, isn't that a bit dangerous...we might want more, please, madame may we have more??? That is...honesty and straight talk to the the voters who vote governments in place!!!.Perhaps this is in regard to Mr. Penner's suggestion of possibly changing that pesky bit about paying off the legal bills of such folk who agree to plead guilty.Has this been a long standing tradition by the way???

Yes, revolutions have been waged in the past and even present by those who want more ... Please!

The threat of social meltdown arises not from excessive growth of the state and its regulatory role but from its capture by groups able to translate market power into political power: socialism for big investors, capitalism for everyone else.

. . . Effective regulation requires effective containment of disproportionately powerful economic interests that can potentially contaminate both public policy and public debate. Considerable evidence suggests that this containment has been breached.

We knew Campbell was Harper's boy. Now we have Christy Clark with a Conservative strategist working for her. Strange to have two Conservative party's in one province.

Well, I will be supporting John Horgan, he is the genuine article. At least we know, he is for sure NDP. I also like Dix. So, whichever one of them is closest to wiping out the BC Liberal/Conservative, what ever party they are. That's who gets my vote.

Never in my life, have I ever seen such a mess, in any other province. BC takes the cake. BC is at the bottom of all of the western provinces, because of the HST. How much more brain dead do the Liberal/Conservatives have to be, to see the HST has killed this province? To expect anything better of the BC Liberal/Conservatives is, an exercise in futility.

Anon 12:27 p.m. - you can vote for whoever you like - if you are actually a BC NDP member - but it's a little rich to talk about fast ferries and ignore all the BC Liberal overspending - Convention Centre, Port Mann Bridge - not to mention BC's debt rising from $34 billion in 2001 to $47 billion this year.

but it's a little rich to talk about fast ferries and ignore all the BC Liberal overspending - Convention Centre, Port Mann Bridge - not to mention BC's debt rising from $34 billion in 2001 to $47 billion this year.

Sure they overspent Bill, but how about telling us how exactly is Adrian going to pay for all that additional spending he wants to do?

Let's get someone new and make something "new" out of New Democratic Party.

Going back to the old days of labour influences (check out Adrian's supporter list), isn't going to attract new voter support.

Gordon Campbell is nothing but a fiscal socialist. Phoney carbon taxes,(not even a greenhouse gas), HST, mla pensions, bcr, need I go on. Remember he forced BC Hydro to buy from independant power producers at 2-8 times the market rate, even though BC produces enough of it's own power. These independants are owned by the likes of GE(manufacturers of the Fukushyma nuclear plants), and Berkshire Hathaway(Warren Buffett).

Bill Tieleman and Senator Larry Campbell, former Vancouver mayor

Jim Sinclair, Cindy Oliver, Ken Georgetti and Bill Tieleman

Bill Tieleman's coverage of the Basi-Virk/BC Legislature Raid Case praised by other journalists:

"This outstanding piece of journalism, in The Tyee, is the work of a journalist who has been deeply involved with this issue from the start and this article should be passed on as far and wide as possible."

"Bill Tieleman from 24 hours . . . . If you want to know about this trial and about this case, you have to read his blog – I mean, that’s just all there is to it – it’s required reading if you want to understand the BC Legislature Raid situation."

- Mike Smyth, columnist, The Province

"The Basi-Virk case....you’ve probably sat through more of these hearings and gone through more of the files and written about it than any other journalist in the province."

- Bill Good, host, The Bill Good Show, CKNW/Corus Radio Network

"Tieleman ...has done a first-rate job covering the trial."

- Paul Willcocks, columnist, the Victoria Times-Colonist

"Tieleman, who marries a considerable journalistic talent with one of the smartest political minds in the province, has been writing more web-exclusive material. And his coverage of the Basi-Virk trial is a must-read -- whether you're an insider or an outsider."

"24 Hours, the Vancouver paper that has been leading the coverage, as well as the hints of conspiracy in B.C."

- Norman Spector, columnist, Globe and Mail

"Although the major media in this circumstance has been giving the case significant coverage, Tieleman's reports on his blog have been outstanding.

The entire cut and thrust of legal wrangling and arguments has been covered and is accompanied by considered analysis.....His blog site coverage of the Basi-Virk trial is the most in depth treatment of one of British Columbia's biggest political scandals."

- Bill Bell, columnist, The North Shore News

"Mr. Tieleman has published online dispatches which, freed from the limitations of newsprint space or broadcast time, can run at length. They also remain available for those select readers who become obsessed with a case also known as Railgate.....

In another bizarre twist to a story with no shortage of them, Mr. Tieleman went to work one day in December only to discover his office had been ransacked. Bookcases had been tipped over and papers strewn, but nothing was missing.

To top it off, a press kit for the self-published novel The Raid, written by a retired military officer in Metchosin and featuring on its cover a photograph from the 2003 police raid, had been left in a conspicuous place."

- Tom Hawthorn, columnist, The Globe and Mail

Nobody has followed the Basi-Virk affair over its past five years with greater diligence than local journalist, Bill Tieleman....Tieleman deserves our thanks, a fistful of journalism awards and some merit citation for citizenship.